KeptZoe Winters

e IncuBooks f

KEPTPublished by IncuBooks

Copyright 2008 by Zoe Winters

PUBLISHER’S NOTE:

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

CONTACT:

incubooks@gmail.com

Acknowledgments

Thank you to the following people:

Mary Higgins (aka WorldofHiglet): For the idea for Theriantype.com (I had the name, but the actual site wouldn’t exist without her.) And also for beta reading.

Lindsay Carruth: For brainstorming and help with fonts and cover design and for listening to all my layout whining.

Jon VanZile, R.J. Keller, Natasha Fondren (aka Spy Scribbler), Cathy Randolph, and Chaz Thompson for beta reading.

Random Grammar Consultant (aka The Grammar Police): Kait Nolan (Any remaining grammar issues are my fault, not hers.) Also, thanks for help with the PDF file.

Moriah Jovan: For helping with questions regarding formatting.

Thanks also to all my supportive blog buddies. We all need a cheering section. You guys rock!

And to my husband, who likes my fiction even though he won’t fully admit he’s reading romance. And also, for the tech support. Without Tom, there would be no curly quotes and I'd look like an even bigger formatting noob.

If you find any grammar flaws or typographical errors, or plot holes, or you know, anything stupid that I should have caught by now after 700 readings of the text, email me at: zoewintersbooks@gmail.com so I can fix it wherever possible. Thanks!

Chapter One

he old-fashioned bell jingled over the doorway, and a gust of chill wind swept through Lawson’s Bookshoppe. It was July. Greta shivered, knowing who it was even as her eyes

remained focused on the counter she was cleaning. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

T“Anthony. We’re closing up early.” “We? You look quite alone. Where’s your little redheaded

friend? What’s her name? Charlotte?” The vampire licked his lips.“You know very well what her name is.”She was beginning to regret sending Charlee home early. The

other clerk may have been only human, but Anthony Burgess often struck when people were alone and vulnerable. He always seemed amused when Charlee stood up to him, not knowing he could relieve her of her blood in seconds.

Greta focused on the counter as the Formica gave under the pressure of her hand. She met his eyes and tucked a strand of short dark hair behind her ear, grateful her kind couldn’t be enthralled.

He wore the standard vampire uniform of basic black, his blond hair pulled back in a low ponytail. A long leather coat flowed out behind him as he strode toward her. All he needed now was menacing background music. Something dark and brooding.

Anthony removed a paperback from the rack beside the check-out without looking at the title and placed it on the counter. His crystal blue eyes glowed and locked with Greta’s dark brown as he inhaled deeply, not bothering to mask his enjoyment of her scent.

Zoe Winters 6

“When are you going to stop teasing me and let me have a taste?” He stared pointedly at her neck. “Coming up on twenty-eight aren’t you? Special year. Moon’s nearly full.”

Greta’s hand shook as she passed the scanner over the book’s bar code. Therians, known to the mortals as Weres, celebrated their birthday not on the anniversary of their birth, but on the full moon closest to it. Twenty-eight wasn’t a number to inspire ooohs and aaahs among the human set, but for a shapeshifter, the twenty-eighth birthday was bigger than the human twenty-one. It was a good drinking age for vamps, anyway.

She took his money, made the change, and slipped the book into the opaque green shopping bag. Her eyes widened when she glimpsed the title. “You just bought a book on menstruation, Anthony. Were you aware?”

He shrugged and smiled, revealing the barest hint of fang. “I like blood.” He scooped the bag up, gave her one last meaningful look, then drifted out of the store.

Greta locked the door behind him and leaned against the cool wood. She could do with fewer bloodsucking patrons; they’d increased in number since the last full moon. With her birth moon coming up, she might as well have a neon all you can eat sign posted in the window.

It was thirty minutes before she gathered the nerve to venture outside. Most of the lights in the parking lot had burned out, and no one had bothered replacing them. With only one human employee and few after dark human patrons, it was deemed an unnecessary expense. The residents of Cary Town might not realize what was out there, but they were shy of the dark all the same.

Greta’s boots clicked loudly on the asphalt, making stealth a physical impossibility. She might as well shout to the vamps from a megaphone. Fresh meat, right here. Come and get it boys.

If Anthony or any of his ilk were lurking, they didn’t take the bait. Nothing black-clad or fanged emerged from the shadows. Anthony had gone home, or hunting, or whatever it was he did at

KEPT 7

night. For all she knew, he hung out at the all-night grocery store scaring stock boys.

When she got home, her orange tabby sat perched on the stoop outside, waiting to be let in.

“Hello, Mink.” She bent to scratch the kitty behind her ears and went inside, stopping in the hallway where the answering machine light blinked.

“This is your mother. I need to see you. Be discreet.” Click. Jaden was more abrupt than usual. Be discreet. Translation: be in fur. Something was going down at the Lawson estate. She glanced at the hall clock, 9:45, plenty of time for a shower.

It wasn’t until Greta shut off the water that she remembered she hadn’t done laundry. Shit. No towels. She closed her eyes and focused as images flowed over her mind. Milk, mice, open fields, birds, blades of grass, hunting, moon. Her senses heightened as she allowed the memories to bring forth the change. The room shrank and swirled around her. Her spirit jolted from her body, hovered for a moment, then was pulled back into her new compact form.

She stretched all the way down to the pads of her paws, then shook herself and licked her black fur down flat. There was going to be a hairball situation if she didn’t do laundry soon. She hopped onto the pedestal sink, admiring herself in the mirror. She loved fur. It was so slimming.

While Greta preened, Mink sauntered into the room and hissed. Greta hissed back. The house cat liked the therian fine in her human form but became agitated whenever she shifted. Tough. It was Greta’s apartment. When Mink could turn into a human and get a job, then she’d have a vote. Greta’s poufy black tail curled under Mink’s chin as she drifted past the tabby.

Simon’s silver Lexus stood parked like a sentinel in her mother’s driveway. It wasn’t unusual for the tribe leader to be at the Lawson home, but seeing the car after the odd phone message made the hairs on the back of Greta’s neck stand up.

Zoe Winters 8

She slipped through the plastic flap in the kitchen door and kept to the corners, slinking under the dilapidated furniture. Her nose twitched, and she began to salivate as she caught the scent of a mouse. She forced herself to ignore it and edged closer to the family room where Simon and her mother spoke in the hushed tones usually reserved for church and funerals.

“We don’t have to do this. Those are the old ways; surely we’re beyond that now.”

Simon allowed his hand to trail over Jaden’s ass. “You knew this was coming. Greta was marked for sacrifice the moment she came into the world in her fur. I told you not to get attached.”

On hearing her name, Greta scooted further under the chair. Therians were born in human form and died in their fur, not the other way around. Everybody knew that.

She’d read legends about therians born in their fur and having extra powers, but she’d always thought they were just stories. Surely she would have noticed if she’d developed more power suddenly.

Was this the emergency the message on the machine had hinted at? She was to be a sacrifice on her birth moon? She shuddered and tried to rein in her emotions so Simon wouldn’t sense her presence.

Her mother’s voice rose, taking on a more desperate tone. “I thought you’d change your mind. I thought if you loved me, you wouldn’t take her. I should have followed my instincts and sent her far from here when she was still a baby.”

Simon laughed. “The border patrol would never have let you cross. They’re loyal to me. We have one shot and I won’t have you ruining it for the tribe, not like her mother tried to.”

Greta didn’t have time to process the revelation that her mother wasn’t her mother because Simon’s cell phone started pounding out a sappy eighties ballad. How he listened to that shit and maintained an interest in the opposite sex remained one of the tribe’s greatest mysteries.

“I have to take this,” Simon said, retreating to the far end of the room.

KEPT 9

Greta followed Jaden to the kitchen and waited while the older woman scribbled something on a slip of paper, rolled it up, and stuck it in Greta’s mouth.

“Did you get all that?”“Mrraar,” she said around the paper.“Go to this place. It’s the only person in the city who can keep

you safe.”Simon’s voice grew louder as he approached the kitchen.

Before he could see her, Greta leaped off the table and scurried out the cat door.

Humans had been busy the past several decades tearing down walls that trapped people in their homelands. The preternaturals, meanwhile, had been engaged in building them up. Normally it didn’t bother her so much; but now she could palpably feel the invisible cage that kept her locked inside the walls of the city, making her world feel claustrophobic, where before it had been a cocoon of perceived safety.

There was one person she was close to who wasn’t a member of the tribe. She ran three miles, scratched on Charlee’s door, and nearly jumped out of her fur when the dog barked. A redheaded woman mumbled a few warnings to the dog and flipped on the porch light.

Greta tried to look unassuming and adorable. “Mrarrr.” “Awwww, aren’t you the cutest!” Score. Charlee bent to scoop Greta up and shooed the dog out of the

house. “Go play, Sammy.” The Irish setter ignored her, choosing instead to lick Greta as

he normally did, not noticing she was a cat now. Charlee’s brows drew up in confusion. She swatted him on his haunches until he ran off down the dirt road, tail wagging.

“Stupid dog. Doesn’t know he’s supposed to hate cats. That could be good news for you, sugar plum.”

Once inside, Greta sprang from Charlee’s arms and bolted for the bathroom. She was thankful for the flimsy door as she

Zoe Winters 10

slammed it shut with the full weight of her feline body. She hopped up on the counter and pressed the push button lock with her paw, then dropped gracefully to the floor.

Charlee jiggled the knob on the other side. “Well, I’ll be damned. Honey, how’d you lock yourself in?”

In. Out. In. Out. Think of something calming. Waves lapping the shore, rolling green meadows. Moments later Greta was curled naked on the floor. She spit the roll of paper out of her mouth.

Printed in Jaden’s cramped script, was an address in Cary Town. And a name. Dayne Wickham.

For a second, Greta couldn’t breathe and thought she might shift back. It had to be a mistake. Jaden couldn’t mean for her to go to him. Dayne Wickham was notorious. He wasn’t just a magic user. He was a sorcerer. People still talked about the night he’d massacred more than half the tribe.

There was a soft knock on the door. “I don’t know how you managed to lock yourself in there, kitty, but I’ve got tools and I’m going to get you out. Okay?”

Greta wrapped a bathrobe around herself and opened the door. Charlee fell back, her eyes wide, tools spread around her in a fan. She must have found a sale. Or else she was dating a contractor.

“So, yeah, I’m a cat and I need to borrow some clothes.” She hoped she wouldn’t have to do the whole transformation all over just to prove it. Surely, cat goes in, human comes out was enough evidence. Especially with no windows or other exits in the bath-room.

Charlee gawked up at her. “What are you?”“A therian.”“A whatian?”Greta sighed and used the term she hated. “Werecat.”“You can turn into a cat? Seriously? How? Have you always

done it? Did you get bitten by another werecat? Do you have other superpowers?”

KEPT 11

“Charlee . . . ” she said with as much patience as she could muster.

By this time Charlee had managed to stand and was prowling around her, looking as if there might be an instruction manual printed somewhere on Greta’s body.

“Clothes,” Greta said, trying to bring her friend back to the issue at hand.

“Sure. Clothes. No problem, but show me the werecat thing.” Charlee moved to the bedroom, Greta trailing behind her.

“Listen, I can’t imagine how I would feel if the tables were turned, but I don’t have time for show-and-tell right now. You’ll be safer the less you know. They’ll use a spell to track me, so I need to be somewhere with strong wards. I just need some clothes to last me a few days.”

“Spells are real too? So then . . . witches . . . and . . . ”“Charlee!”“Oh, right. Sure. Borrow whatever you want; I’ll pack you a

bag.” Greta pulled on a pair of jeans and T-shirt from the floor. Her

face scrunched in distaste at the outfits her friend was throwing into the bag. Charlee believed in dressing sexy like it was a reli-gion. It was a little more than Greta personally wanted to show off, but it was better than nudity.

“Are you sure this is all I can do to help? I could go on the lam with you.”

Greta hid a smile. She wished she could take her up on her offer, and for a moment a fantasy of Thelma and Louise-ing it through Cary Town caught her imagination. But Charlee wasn’t prepared to deal with what was out there, and Greta couldn’t protect her.

She watched as her friend tossed some makeup and a couple of trashy romance novels into the bag. Only Charlee would think running for your life was the time to read romance and wear lipstick.

Zoe Winters 12

Greta decided she should have told her friend about her double life long ago. If not for the ridiculous loyalty she’d felt for the tribe that now intended to strap her down to a stone altar, she probably would have.

Chapter Two

ayne Wickham sat hunched over his computer. His posture showed his age even as his face and physique refused to. He brushed a clump of dark hair out of his eyes and stared at

the twitchy screen in front of him. Technology was a beautiful thing. He’d found a most reliable supplier of were-blood on the Internet.

DTheriantype.com had a cross-referencing index matching the

correct were-blood type to specific rituals. It was almost enough to make a sorcerer pack all his musty old books into storage and move everything to the computer. Almost.

He’d met Alistair Cranze on a magic user’s message board. The wizard had recommended the site, and for the past year Dayne hadn’t had any trouble. He couldn’t remember how he’d managed to get by before. Werecat was considered the most magical of all were-blood types. And for this working, even more so.

The mythology claiming a witch’s familiar to be a cat was rooted somewhat in fact. Werecats without a tribe had sought witches, wizards, and occasionally a sorcerer or two. They’d traded blood for shelter for centuries.

Things were different now. These days, Weres in desperate situ-ations and in need of cash donated anonymously to one of the blood banks, and various magic users just ordered what they needed from occult shopkeepers or online. It was much cleaner this way.

Weres could be more trouble than they were worth. Most magic users had learned that the hard way, as there seemed to be a certain level of idiotic stubbornness that came with the territory of wielding magic.

Dayne rolled his mouse over the send button and clicked, then leaned back in his chair, interlacing his fingers behind his head. He smiled as the animated GIF wand waved, and purple digital glitter sprinkled over his computer desktop, indicating his order was being

Zoe Winters 14

processed. The site was on the cheesy side, but a reliable company was a reliable company, cutesy bells and whistles notwithstanding.

That was one thing about the white lighters. You could trust them. They lived their entire lives according to a mission of good-ness and honesty. It made Dayne want to hurl, but with few exceptions, they wouldn’t betray you.

He’d just shut down the computer when a rap sounded on the front door. No one knocked on his door anymore. Primarily because he was known as the city’s darkest evil and everyone was too scared to try to overthrow him. The postman had long ago learned the wisdom of quietly leaving packages by the door. Dayne didn’t know what the fuss had been about. The man’s hair had regrown in a mere matter of months.

“Just a moment, please.” Whoever was calling after midnight could only be bringing trouble with them.

For a while, after what was later called the tribal massacre, the lone hero had darkened his door, convinced Dayne was up to something nefarious and had to be taken down. Or another Cary Town villain decided to rise to infamy and needed Dayne out of the way to do it.

He’d eventually managed the right formula on the wards, and most steered clear, deciding it wasn’t worth it. It had been quiet for the past decade. Either the wards were working or he’d been deemed irrelevant. Either way was fine by him.

The wards dropped as Dayne opened the door to reveal a diminutive black cat with bright golden eyes sitting primly on the middle of his front stoop. She blinked up at him full of rehearsed pet store innocence, her tail wrapped around her tiny paws.

“Mrarrr.” “You must be kidding me. I don’t take in strays.” Dayne

slammed the door. Did the werecat think he couldn’t sense the magic crackling around her? Was she that naive? Perhaps a junior wizard still under apprenticeship would have been fooled, but not someone with his level of experience.

KEPT 15

He drained the last dregs of coffee from the mug in the microwave. There was a second knock.

“Oh, for God’s sake.” He was going to zap the little miscreant halfway across town and let the preternatural border patrol sort out the pieces.

Dayne opened the door this time with a spell ready on his lips, but stopped short. She was breathtaking, not that this was uncommon in a Were. They tended to have a certain magnetism. She had short dark hair, and she was leggy. A personal weakness of his.

Black leather pants encased her legs as if they’d been stitched onto her. It seemed only magic could have gotten those pants on and would be required to get them off again. A red silky top plunged to reveal ample but not overpowering cleavage. The werecat had a large duffel bag slung over one shoulder and balanced against her hip as if she’d planned to move in.

He held up a hand before little Dayne could cause him to do something colossally stupid. “The wardrobe change doesn’t alter my position, princess.”

“I thought you’d be old,” she said, wrinkling her nose.He gave her points for not stammering that opening line.

“What leads you to believe I’m not?”“I need help.” Well, she got right down to it, didn’t she? Such a Red Riding

Hood. It was intoxicating. In a different mood, with a different species, he might have let her into his lair.

“Not interested. Try the Salvation Army.” The brunette wedged one high-heeled boot inside the door.

“Please. I’ll be killed. The tribe plans to sacrifice me.” Desperate, frightened eyes.“And somehow I can’t work up any feeling on that topic. Good-

bye now.”“Wait! You can use my blood.”Dayne arched a brow. Not quite as naive as she appeared.

Zoe Winters 16

“I get my were-blood online. I have no use for you.” In truth, he could think of many uses for her, none of which required the promise of her potent magical blood.

The phone rang, preventing little Dayne from taking over. “If you’ll excuse me.”

Appearance-wise, Dayne was nothing like she’d expected. She’d expected an old man with long robes and a beard, dark beady eyes, and a sinister thin mouth. A beak-like nose and long age-gnarled fingers would finish the look. Dayne was none of these things. For one thing, he was wearing blue jeans and a T-shirt.

For another, he was hot, debonair even. Except for the evil. Despite the danger he exuded, Greta turned the doorknob and slipped into the cottage. It wasn’t bravery or stupidity that drove her, but desperation.

“Don’t do this to me, Mick. You know I need this blood.” Dayne stood at the other end of the room making a pot of coffee, his back to her. A cordless phone was pressed between his ear and shoulder.

Greta dropped the duffel bag on the floor without a sound and tuned her amplified hearing in to listen to his phone call. The other man’s voice trembled over the phone.

“I . . . I . . . understand that sir, but we have a f-firm policy of only delivering to those who follow our code of ethics and it’s been b-brought to my attention that you . . . don’t.”

“I ’m very unhappy about this. It was Alistair wasn’t it? That little shit was my bestest best friend until he found out I wasn’t out saving the world every night.”

“Please, Sir, I’m just doing what my boss told me. He said to tell you it’s a conflict of interests to continue delivering your ship-ments.”

KEPT 17

“I see. Well, don’t think I won’t be reporting you to the Board of Magical Merchants for discrimination. There are laws against this sort of thing.”

Greta heard Mick’s sigh of relief over the phone. Someone like Dayne Wickham reporting him to a board of magical anything was minor, the equivalent of an angry shopper threatening never to return.

Dayne stabbed his finger against the button to end the call, then flung the phone across the room. Greta froze. His back was still to her when he spoke.

“I thought I told you to leave. Or was my dismissal not clear enough? Perhaps it would help if I spelled it out with catnip.” He turned to face her. “Or I could carve the message.”

His glance shifted to a gleaming silver ritual knife balanced precariously on the edge of the desk. Silver wouldn’t kill her necessarily, but it burned like hell and was much harder to heal.

Dayne blazed across the floor and grabbed Greta by the wrist, hauling her back to the entryway. “Have you any idea the danger you put yourself in when you trespass on a sorcerer’s property? Shall I enlighten you?”

Greta wrenched herself free of his grip. “You don’t have a supplier now. I’ll give you the blood you need if you’ll let me stay until after the full moon. I won’t cause any trouble.”

She wasn’t sure why she was still asking to stay. He’d just made a not-so-subtle hint about using her skin as a carving block. Hiding in a hollowed-out tree for the next several nights was sounding like a more sane option than remaining with the unhinged sorcerer.

He crossed his arms over his chest, his stance wide, and to the human eye, relaxed. But Greta could smell the tendrils of controlled anger coming off him. She’d always been able to smell emotion, but the scent seemed sharper now.

“They send one of you, all pretty and in distress, and I’m supposed to fall all over myself trying to protect you? Let’s get one thing clear. I’m the bad guy. I don’t rescue fair maidens.”

Zoe Winters 18

Greta flushed at the pretty part, glossing right over the bad guy part.

He muttered something in Latin with his arm outstretched, and for a moment Greta thought she was about to die. Instead, the cordless phone floated from behind him to his waiting hand. His eyes remained trained on her as he punched the numbers into the phone.

“Clarissa, I’m sorry to wake you, love, but I was wondering if you might be persuaded to set aside a pint of werecat blood for me. I need it by the full moon.”

“Mr. Wickham, um hi,” a sleepy voice on the other end answered. “No, it’s okay. You’re our best customer. We actually don’t have any therian cat blood in stock. We can get some, but it’ll take six weeks; our supplier’s backed up. You could try a local therian.”

“Meow,” Greta said, still in human form.“I see. Well, thank you anyway.” Dayne clicked off the phone

and glared at Greta, as if she’d somehow personally gummed up the works.

“So, then I can stay?” “I ’ll have to erect stronger wards. Please keep in mind, you are

here for my convenience due to inventory troubles. I’m not your knight in shining armor. I don’t care about your personal prob-lems. And if you wander from the protection of this house, I will not be lured into the trap to save you. I don’t get involved with Weres.”

“Therians,” Greta said, returning his glare. “If I were you, I would remember that although I would like to

do my ritual this full moon, there are infinite full moons available to me. You might not be so lucky. I’ll be in my study gathering supplies for the wards.”

His footsteps receded down the hallway, and Greta made a face. She spun in a slow circle taking in her surroundings.

She’d expected a medieval-looking castle equipped with a full dungeon, or some austere mansion. His home was neither. It was

KEPT 19

. . . cozy, though larger than the average cottage. The fireplace crackled with dying embers that had recently warmed something in a small iron cauldron.

The main room was lined with dark oak bookshelves and rows upon rows of books. The walls were stone but emitted a sense of warmth, the direct opposite of Dayne.

Maybe it was a timeshare. Greta suppressed a giggle as she tried to imagine Dayne Wick-

ham, the hapless victim of a timeshare scheme. It would explain his sour demeanor.

Two windows on either side of the fireplace were open with long lightweight crimson drapes hanging in front of them. A storm was brewing. As the wind howled outside, the curtains were sucked into the screen, then puffed back out as if the wall itself were breathing. Greta was still staring at the windows, mesmer-ized by the sensation of the house breathing, when Dayne returned.

“Come with me. I’ll need some of your blood, since you seem to be in a donating mood.”

Her eyes drifted back to the knife on the table. “If I were going to harm you, I would have already done so. I

grow very quickly bored with the practice of building trust in others only to crush it at the last possible moment. Unlike some species.”

Greta flinched at the look he gave her. But when he turned, she followed. The dwelling went deeper than it appeared from the outside, and it occurred to her that the floor was sloping down-ward as they worked their way to an underground part of the house.

The hairs on the back of her arm stood at attention as the passageway narrowed until it was only big enough for two people. Then it began to spiral more steeply down, and the smooth slope became stairs. It was such a gradual transition, she wasn’t sure if it was the architecture itself, or magic.

At the bottom of the stairs was a large stone room with shelves of books lining the walls, as well as potions, pots, wands, and

Zoe Winters 20

grisly items in cloudy jars. Cobwebs had grown over much of the area.

There were a couple of unlit torches on the wall, though the room’s illumination came from a dome light in the ceiling. A steel cage stood in the back, its purpose most likely not on the up-and-up. Greta shivered. So much for Dayne not having a dungeon.

Chapter Three

e had to admit, she was a good little actress. Almost as good as Jaden had been. The werecat stood at the bottom of the stairs barely inside the cavernous room where Dayne

performed his more complicated rituals. Her arms were wrapped tightly around her, a protective barrier against him, no doubt.

HHe didn’t want to be paranoid, but he wondered if the tribe

had been responsible for his were-blood supply being cut off. The timing was too coincidental for his liking. There had been rumblings that the tribe leader was getting more powerful these days. Could Simon know Dayne planned to act against him on the next full moon?

It had been thirty years since Dayne’s last encounter with Cary Town’s werecat tribe. He’d nearly died thinking he was saving Jaden’s life, only to be led into a trap. If he hadn’t fortified himself with so much magic, he would’ve been killed.

He’d gotten lucky. Shapeshifters, though made of magic, didn’t know how to wield it. He’d taken out most of the tribe and managed to escape, sustaining several injuries, including a few to his pride.

Now they were sending this little number to lure him away. Didn’t they have any new material? Dayne’s eyes drifted to the cage in the back corner. One never knew when one might need such a contraption. He ran his hand idly over the bit of stubble growing on his chin as he contemplated the cage. He should lock her up until the ritual, use her blood, then throw her out.

If anything, such an act would send a message to the tribe that Dayne Wickham was not to be fucked with. He was suddenly glad he was acting against Simon now, rather than later. He’d put it off far too long.

Zoe Winters 22

For whatever inane reason, Jaden loved Simon. It had taken years for Dayne’s love for her to diminish to the point that he could dispatch her lover without guilt. He considered taking the Were’s blood now and getting rid of her. Except, even he wouldn’t stoop to that level of dishonor. It had nothing to do with anything the tribe might plan to do to the girl.

“Are you cold?” he asked. Dammit.She shook her head. Eventually, a pouty-lipped woman, like this one, was going to

get him killed. Prudence would dictate he wait for another full moon, but the effects of the spell wouldn’t be nearly so strong at any other time. Simon was ready to end this now, and Dayne might not get another chance.

“Sit.” He motioned to a painted white circle in the middle of the floor.

She bit her bottom lip and slowly moved into the center of the circle.

“Are you having second thoughts about being here?” She nodded.“Good.”Dayne crossed to the far wall and selected a large and well-

worn book from the uppermost shelf. He took a small needle from the desk drawer nearest the bookcase and opened the book to the correct page.

He pricked her finger, ignoring her indignant cry, and squeezed several drops of blood into the center of the circle. When he released her hand to say the incantation, she sucked on her finger. It took every ounce of willpower for his eyes not to linger on her pretty little mouth.

He focused more intently on chanting. When he closed the book, the werecat stood and placed her

hands on her hips. “I didn’t want to come to you for help. You were my only choice. You’re the strongest magic user in the city, and we dislike the same people. I don’t know what your problem

KEPT 23

is, but I don’t want to die. My moth . . . Jaden gave me your address. I was in cat form so I couldn’t exactly ask questions but . . . ”

Before she could finish the sentence, she was lying on her back, Dayne’s hand wrapped around her throat. He stopped squeezing when he registered the look in her eyes. She’d clearly forgotten she was stronger than he was. Something he could use.

“Who did you say sent you?” He poured menace into his voice, intent on keeping her on edge and pressing his advantage.

“Jaden . . . I . . . Please . . . ” Greta’s fingernails dug into his arms in panic.

He released her. “Forgive me. I have trust issues.”“Yeah, no shit.” Greta shot back to her feet, the slight crouch

of her body showed she was ready for him. She rubbed her throat. “Did I hurt you?”“You scared me. I almost shifted.”“Is that a bad thing?”“I can’t fight worth a damn in my fur.” She crossed her arms

defensively over her chest.“I ’m sorry.”Her face flushed in anger. “Are you? Because the way it looks

to me, we both have a problem and we both have a solution. You need blood; I have blood. I need protection; you have protection. This doesn’t seem all that complicated to me. Does it seem complicated to you?”

Dayne crossed his arms over his chest. “I have ground rules, Were.”

“Fine. I have a ground rule too.”One brow rose. “Oh? Do tell.” While it was indeed true that she could kick his ass without

blinking if he suddenly developed laryngitis, he would wager he could chant faster than she could drop kick him. Not every spell required books and herbs, candles or circles, or any of the million and one accoutrements the magical set swore by.

Zoe Winters 24

“Don’t call me Were. If you’re really that old, you know that’s offensive. Whatever your therian issue is, put it aside. I’m not whoever did you wrong. I would prefer to be called by my name if that wouldn’t be too much trouble.”

He cocked his head to the side and studied her. She alternated so quickly between timid and smart-mouthed, he thought he might be dealing with a multiple personality. It wouldn’t be the first time in his long existence. Dayne’s mouth curved in a genu-inely amused smile before he caught himself and returned to his former cold expression.

“Very well, and your name?”“Greta.” “Is that your only rule, Greta?”She nodded, the wind going out of her sails as she returned to

being the frightened kitty. He wondered if she was aware of these highly irregular mood swings.

“My rules are as follows: You will not leave this house until after the full moon. If your tribe truly plans to sacrifice you, the wards will keep you safe as long as you remain inside. If you leave, you will not be allowed back in. Since I can’t keep an eye on you 24/7, when I can’t watch you you’ll be locked in the guest room. For my own personal safety, of course.”

She stood perfectly still for a moment, the tension radiating off her body as she clenched and unclenched her hands at her sides.

“I won’t let you lock me up.” She said it calmly, her tone completely even, but she turned and ran up the stairs. Moments later, the front door slammed.

He shook his head and sighed. The spell hadn’t lied. He had. He hadn’t needed her blood to strengthen the wards. The wards were fine as they were, barring his bad habit of voluntarily open-ing the door without looking through the peephole first. He’d needed her blood for a truth spell.

The light that had glowed around her immediately after he’d finished the incantation should have left no doubt to her honest need. Though again, he wasn’t running a charity service. So why

KEPT 25

he should feel the need to help random Weres in distress like some sort of magical halfway house, he couldn’t be sure.

He’d felt the fear pouring off her and conceded no one was that good an actress. He’d watched her eyes flash between brown and yellow as she’d tried to stop from shifting. Still, he wouldn’t put it past Jaden to be using her.

Dayne shrugged. It was no longer his problem. Let someone else handle it. He wasn’t going to become a hero; they didn’t normally survive long.

He climbed the stairs and found Greta’s abandoned bag beside the front door. Rifling through it, he found makeup, clothes, and a few tacky books with shirtless men and women with heaving breasts.

He crossed back to the computer, loaded the web browser, and typed, “Sacrifice,” “Therian” into the search box. Several sites popped up, most about werecats. This breed liked their sacrifice.

Dayne clicked the link that looked most helpful. The screen filled with morbid drawings of beautiful women, sometimes men, chained down to stone slabs, blood being drained from them into a type of moat around the altar as the others shifted into their animal form.

The images showcased a type of twisted sadism that most reserved for those not of their kind. Further down the page were photographs. One in particular caught his attention.

The woman’s hair was longer than Greta’s, but the same shiny dark brown. Otherwise, she resembled her enough that Dayne could almost see Greta on the slab instead. He scrolled the mouse over the arrow to leave the page.

A warmth prickled over his senses. The kitty was still in the house. He should have been angry, but after the photos what he felt was relief that she was still safely ensconced in his well-warded fortress. Somewhere. Cats were experts at hiding. If he’d been a human without magic running through his veins, he might never have known.

And now she was terrified of him. Had he worked the evil persona so strongly that he’d become so? He wasn’t all fluffy

Zoe Winters 26

goodness and light, but he hadn’t thought he’d sunk to mustache-twirling levels of evil.

He focused on the bookcase, causing one of the books to fly off the shelf into his hand. He flipped to the appropriate passage and whispered the incantation necessary to lock all the doors and windows, then he allowed the book to fly back to its place.

He needed to get out and socialize more. Even ten years ago, Dayne never would have made a speech like the one he’d made in the basement about locking her up. It sounded like it had come out of Evil for Dummies. A less insane sorcerer would lock up the books he didn’t want her in, not lock her up. Or perhaps a sorcerer would lock her up.

He started down the hallway, his footfalls light and measured. “Here, kitty kitty.”

*** Thank you for reading this sample. If you'd like to read the full novella free, please subscribe to my newsletter by sending a blank email to: freekept@gmail.com

You'll receive a complimentary copy of Kept as a thank you for subscribing. You will be able to unsubscribe at any time. Also, I do not clutter people's inboxes with excessive emails. The most you'll hear from me is once a month, and usually not even that often, since I only send out newsletters when I have a new release or a contest for readers. ***

You can also find me at: www.zoewinters.org